It is well known in the are to use aircraft for delivery of fire control agents to forest fires or other large-scale fires. U.S. Pat. No. 1,396,894, issued to G. C. Stevens, Nov. 15, 1921, describes an apparatus for air delivery of water to a forest fire by flooding the pontoons of a seaplane while at rest on the surface of a body of water, and then releasing the stored water while flying over the fire area.
It is also well known in the art that high altitude delivery of liquid or powdered fire control agents may have an insignificant effect on fires of great intensity since the fire-controlling agent must be applied at or near the base of the flame to be effective. This limit of efficacy is due to the protective effect of the fire updraft. This shielding effect is described in a report entitled, "High Altitude Retardant Drop Mechanization Study," published Apr. 30, 1973, by the Northern Forest Fire Laboratory, Missoula, Mont.
It is also known in the art that this shielding phenomena may be overcome by containerized aerial delivery of fire control materials. Such containers have a mass great enough to penetrate the updrafts created by a forest fire. The containers then broadcast their payload in the midst of the fire, at or near the base of the flames.
The present invention provides an efficient means of aerial deployment of containerized fire control delivery devices in large quantities.